Hawks football beats South Hamilton in second half

Libbie Randall - Sports Reporter

Friday

Sep 7, 2018 at 8:30 PMSep 7, 2018 at 10:01 PM

W-G Football keeps on rolling out the W’s this season as the Hawks added another victory to their season on Friday, Sept. 7. In a close and low-scoring game, W-G pulled out the win in the second half and defeated South Hamilton 11-8.

The game saw equal talent on both sides of the field in the first half of the game as both offense and defensive worked to put the Hawks on the scoreboard. Unfortunately South Hamilton got to it first when they ran in the ball for a touchdown off of an interception. The last two points South Hamilton made were from the two point conversion that followed.

At this point Head Coach George Ashman simply told his team to relax.

“We’re (the Hawks) not used to fumbling the ball or turning it over because we turned it over five times,” Ashman said. “It was only eight-and-nothing so I told the guys (…) quit beating yourself.”

Reese Jamison was one to prove his ability after the Hawks’ opponent drove ahead by responding with a solo tackle once W-G was back on defense. Jamison was able to prevent South Hamilton from advancing past their own 30 yard line and kick started the rest of the successful plays that were to come.

After words were exchanged in the locker room the Hawks returned to the field to win in the second half.

As soon as W-G got on the offensive side Bryce Achenbach was the one to make a huge catch to put the team on the 30 yard line. From there it was Tate Lettow who ran the ball right down the middle for another Hawks first down. Gabe Yingst got the touchdown to put the Hawks on the score board with less than one minute left in the third quarter and Kannen Carrick tied the game at eight with a two-point conversion.

Four fingers flew up from every team member as W-G entered into the fourth quarter.

When asked what the significance of holding up the number four on each team member’s hand means, Jackson Newland attributed Ashman.

“Coach works our butts off, it shows pride and it’s been a tradition for years,” Newland said.

The momentum kept going when Achenbach made another huge catch to put his team on the 25 yard line. Just like clockwork Lettow carried it even further to the 20 yard line before South Hamilton made the stop.

Up against a tough and skilled defense, the Hawks decided to try for a field goal at the 20 yard line. Pacey Moats put W-G ahead by three points and the rest of the team fought until the final buzzer to keep it that way.

At the end of this particular game Yingst said him and his team were prepared for what kind of competition South Hamilton would bring.

“We just knew we had to bring it,” Yingst said. “They (South Hamilton) were a really good team and they were strong upfront, but we just had to drive it down. We just kept moving down the field and kept our heads up.”

Up next, the Hawks will be traveling to Van Meter on Friday, Sept. 14.